


Old Friends/New friends

by crowfeets



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: F/F, M/M, Multi, perleo deserves more recognition cmon now fire + water yall, small town buddies? hell ya, sort of a night in the woods au u know, theyre gay scoob, this ship is totally underrated and its depressing honestly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-24 14:50:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13813455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crowfeets/pseuds/crowfeets
Summary: Perseus Jackson grew up in the small town of Lindow, Maine like everyone in his family had before him. He was involved in swimming, was a star athlete, got good grades, and took after his father in the looks aspect. He had a full ride to college, the first of his family to even be considered. The only problem has he had a temper to match even that of Leo Valdez, the town delinquent, who was known for his fiery blow ups.  They were unlikely friends, the type of pair you were never really sure were actually friends- hell they almost didn't remember. Until Percy came home.





	Old Friends/New friends

The Polynesian stares blankly out the window of the bus driving him from town to town, Lake Pontchartrain blasting in his headphones, his fingers working to match the beat of the drums in the background almost perfectly. He has no idea how long he's been sitting here, how long he's been staring out of the window watching strangers pass without even a glance up at him. Occasionally, when he can force himself to think, he wonders where they're going, why they're going, and even creates little back stories for every face he manages to get a clear view of. The stories, while entertaining, often aren't enough to keep his eyes open, and he's beyond sure by now he's had four naps. Perseus was just beginning to drift off again when the bus pulled to a sudden, jolting halt, causing him to perk up and pull an earphone out, lazily blinking at the driver. Did they run out of gas? Maybe the driver forgot he was here and he'd end up getting trapped in the bus barn. The latter idea was disproved when the chubby man sitting at the front turned and barked for him to get off, babbling something about this being the last stop.

Well that made more sense than whatever he was thinking.

With a huff, the tanned boy stood and grabbed his suitcase, thanking the bus driver as he stepped off the bus and into the night air, where he was expecting his mother to be waiting for him. Instead he was only greeted by the sounds of crickets chirping in the woods around him, the street light above flickering as bats swooped by to catch their dinner. Not a single soul in sight. A defeated frowned bubbled to his lips and he ran a hand through his hair, voice cracking as he spoke, "Welcome home Percy." It was...disappointing To say the least. The Polynesian found his way to a bench and sat down, ringing his mother a few times to no avail- after all his mom did turn her phone off at night. It helped her sleep better. He slid a few boney fingers to the side of his skull and rubbed at his temples as he scrolled through his contacts, eventually settling for a person he didn't exactly want to see right now. Half of his contacts were from college, and the other half was his mom and Chiron. So Chiron, your friendly neighborhood police man, it was. He tapped the contact and brought the phone to his face, thanking whatever gods there were that he picked up.

"Hey," He sighed into the phone, immediately being greeted by a wave of 'how are you's, 'how is school's, those type of questions. A small smile spread over his lips, but only for a moment, as the second he told Chiron he was back in town and needed a ride, the questions came. Why? What happened? Does your mom know? A long sigh let the boy, creating a puff of fog in the night air. "I'll see you when you get here," He mumbled and shoved his phone into his pocket. It wasn't that Chiron was a bad guy or anything, it was just...there Was only so much lecturing he could take in one night, especially when he just got back. He knew if half of those questions were answered it end in even nor lectures, end with his mom finding out everything, end in...well Less optimal things like him getting smacked up side the head. So he chose to ignore the. Ignorance is bliss right? Percy sat his bag down and plopped down on a bench just outside the station, pulling his arms further in his sleeves to keep his fingers warm. Autumn was never one of his favorite seasons, but he could appreciate the changes of color. And Halloween. Everyone loved Halloween.

He had apparently spaced out as he waited for Chiron, because he hadn't noticed the cop car pull in. The police officer honked and hung out the window, grinning at the Polynesian, his beard wiggling as he spoke, "Perseus!" The cop called, Percy tilting his head with a weak smile "Come on then I don't have all night." He didn't have to be asked twice. Cold air and him didn't mix.

Percy pulled himself from the bench with a soft groan, his knees cracking as he stood. He grabbed his bag and popped the back door open, throwing it inside before sliding into the front seat with a sigh, the feeling of warm air blowing on his face making him smile. At least he had a smile for a second, because the second the locks to the doors clicked shut, Chiron was lecturing him on the fact that he was home. He should be in school, he should be studying, blah blah blah. He glanced over and frowned, mumbling "Chiron I've been on the bus for hours can we do this tomorrow or something? I just want to get home to my bed and my negligent mother." The cop sighed and reached over, ruffling Percy's raven hair with the softest of smiles, "Fine. But it will be worse tomorrow when you hear from Sally and I."

"I know," He chuckled and brushed his hand away, fixing his hair before he turned his head out the window, watching as buildings- both abandoned and not- rolled by. This was his home. His decaying, old home that sometimes smelled like ass thanks to the tea factory near by, but home. Before he knew it he was home home, standing outside of the cop car he had been in too many times, at the house that he lived in for years, in a town that was falling apart and smelled like tea and he was home. The teenager thanked Chiron, grabbed his bag from the back and quickly shuffled to the front door, pulling his key from.his pocket. It was one of those things you never got rid of, your first house key, especially if you were coming home from college as a surprise for your mother. He pushed the door open with his foot, waved at the police officer, and stepped inside his warm, two story house. Those green eyes of his scanned over the living room with a nostalgic smile. Nothing had changed, the pictures were still in the same spot, his acceptance letter was stilling framed above the TV, his father's ashes were sitting right under them, nothing looked different. It felt like he had only stepped o it of the house to get a breath of air, and hadn't been gone for three years now. It was a feeling he only now realized he missed.

But he was home now and that's what mattered right? That's what he told himself as he shut and locked the door, making his way up the stairs. He shot a look towards his mothers room, watching the lights flicker under her door. She couldn't sleep with the phone on, but she could sleep with the TV on. His mother was a human disaster and he loved her so very, very much. The boy continued up the stairs until he reached his bedroom door, the stop sign he stole in freshman year still hanging on his door. He grinned and swung the door open, stepping inside the room with a sharp inhale. It still smelled like pizza and rain, a much better smell compared to his dorm which was...mostly Dust. It smelled like old people and dust. It wasn't a very good dorm room, he'll say that now. He threw his bag to the side and shut his door, kicking off his shirt as he slid over to his bed, face planting into the bed with a happy groan. He pulled his pillows in towards his body and held tightly onto them, wiggling around so he could bury himself in his blanket and burrito up.

His eyes fluttered shut and he gave a soft groan into the pillow, digging his nails into it with a shaken laugh. He had missed this hellish place, whether he would admit it or not. There was an entire day of exploring what had changed in his small town, of catching up with friends, of seeing his mother, but for right now he needed to sleep. He curled in a bit tighter and in about five minutes was put cold, snoring softly. He twitched as he slept, running through his town with a bat strapped to his back, looking for anything. He stumbled upon a small band, stumbled upon a few beat to death cars, and stumbled above a four story tall bear with glowing eyes and fungus growing from its back except the fungus loomed more like towns and cities than it did mushrooms. As the bear pulled itself from the ground, eyes glowing, Percy shot up from his bed, wide green eyes staring blankly at the wall, his dream escaping him before he could sink his nails into anything and hold onto even a fragment to figure out what it meant. He had been having weird dreams for a while now, but never like that. The Polynesian sighed and kicked his legs over the side of the bed, rubbing his temples lightly. New day. New start. He stood and stretched with a light groan, smiling at the sound of his mother singing in the kitchen below. Things were okay, he told himself as he made his way down the stairs to greet his mother, he'd be okay

The boy made his way into the kitchen with a lazy smile, running his hands through his untamed hair. "Hey mom," His voice cracked as he spoke and he cleared his throat, watching as his mother whipped around, armed with a frying pain and a bewildered look on her face. It took a moment for Sally to process who he was, but when she did the frying pan was out of her hands and she was hugging her baby boy. She didn't look a day over 30, with long, wavy brown hair hightlighted with gray streaks, her blue eyes glistening with excitement, a large smile on her face that caused the crow feet near her eyes to grow as her cheeks bunched up. "What are you doing home?" She asked upon pulling back, cupping her son's face and stroking over his jaw. "Shouldn't you be on the bud? Oh god Percy, I thought you were coming later today. Im sorry sweetheart I must've gotten the days mixed up. How did you get home?" The questiosn kept coming and he gave a warm laugh, setting his hands over his mothers for a moment. 

"Mom," He snorted, "Mom I'll explain during breakfast okay, but you're burning your eggs." The woman made a soft 'oh' and spun around, immediately working at her eggs, a frown spreading over her lips. Percy chuckled and moved to the fridge, taking the opportunity to pull the shredded cheese they put in scrambled eggs out and sprinkled it all over. His mother mumbled a soft thank you and waved him off to set the table, like it was a regular weekend in the Jackson house hold. It would be a regular weekend in the Jackson house hold from now on whenever his mother found that he had dropped put of college, but that was a conversation that could wait until later today, when his mother wasnt so excited to see him. It wasn't very nice to open up a conversation with 'Hi Mom I know you had big plans for me, but I dropped out'. He tossed the cheese back into the fridge and pulled out a gallon of milk, moving to grab a cup. As he did so, his mother began babbling about the new book she was working on. It was a mystery murder, and he was gonna read. Like actually sit down and read it, focus on the words and everything. He wanted to support his mother, but sometimes the ADHD got the best of him. He had a stack of her books sitting on his nightstand that he was suppose to read and never got around to it. College was hard. 

The Polynesian sighed and slid into his seat at the table, middle seat whilr his parents had the heads. Or well, now his mom. She sat down a plate of cheesy eggs and toast in front of him before taking her spot and flashing a warm smile. "What have you been doing?" She asked, only getting a shrug from her son, "Okay well what do you plan to do?" Percy thought about it for a minute before grinning.

"Im gonna go see Piper. She still workin' at her dad's shop?" He watched as his mom nodded, "Cool. Any idea where Grover works?" His Mom hummed for a moment before nodding. She took a moment to answer, finishing off the bite of toast she had before speaking. 

"Yeah, he works down at the grocery store off the highway." Percy furrowed his brows in confusion, "It was out in about a few months ago, they had to tear down the old one. It caught fire." She shrugged and Percy gave a soft hum, nodding. Well then.

"Well I'll go see him too." He quickly finishes his eggs and kisses his mother goodbye, before racing out the door to see his friends. It had been far too long.


End file.
